Jillian Johnson, April 19, 2012
The latest mobile app, Draw Something, created by gaming developer OMGPop, has captivated the interest and time of cell phone users everywhere. Since its release on February 6, the game has attracted over 35 million users.
Similar to Pictionary, one player selects a word from a list of three and draws a picture on their phone using their finger which the other player has to guess the selected word. Each word is worth a certain number of coins, in which the hardest word to draw is worth the most. The words include places, characters, objects and even celebrities.
When players first begin playing, they are given a limited number of colors to use to draw their picture. Players earn coins when their picture is guessed correctly and they can "buy" more colors. As compared to other mobile games such as Words with Friends, the purpose of the game is not to beat the other player. Rather, players want to draw an image that the other player can guess. While the game is so simple and so easy, it's also so addicting.
So, how can a mobile drawing game teach us more about SEO training? Surprisingly enough, it can teach us a lot.
Words are key
As mentioned above, players can select from three words and each word is worth a certain amount of coins depending upon its difficulty to draw. Players can take the easy route and draw something simple or take the challenging route and draw something that requires strategic thinking. But, players should always keep the other player in mind and think if this is a word the other player will think to guess, or a word they are familiar with.
The same scenario occurs when choosing keywords. When selecting the best keywords, it's important to pick words that are competitive and words that people are searching for. Selecting words that people aren't searching for will not yield the results you're looking for.
Waiting is not fun
While Draw Something doesn't put a time limit when drawing a picture, it's commonly understood by all players that waiting for a player to finish a picture is bothersome. Players want to see the picture as soon as possible in order to guess the word.
The same goes for loading a website. Web audiences don't like having to wait for a page to load that they're interested in viewing. Rather, it turns away an audience, thus your traffic.
Pictures impress
Although players are to draw pictures, some bend the rules and simply write words. This takes away the fun of the game and bores the other player. Players are impressed by uniquely drawn pictures since they are using their fingers.
While content is king in SEO, pictures highly attract the interest of web audiences. Their creativity and design speak to an audience just as words do, but in less time, and sometimes space.
Reach the social network
When players are looking for others to play the game with, they can scan their social network contacts to find another player. Or, players may simply turn to their social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter and ask their friends and followers to play.
Social networking has demonstrated itself a successful way to reach a large audience. Businesses can utilize social media sites to not only sell their products or services, but also engage and interact with customers. Social networks allow users to share valuable information, upload pictures and videos and obtain feedback.
Thanks to the mobile app, Draw Something, we can learn how to better our SEO skills to attract customers.
